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The guests had been selected with a boldness and discrimination in which the initiated recognised the firm hand of Catherine the Great.
客人的挑选颇具胆识，内行人从中看得出大人物凯瑟琳的大手笔。
Associated with such immemorial standbys as the Selfridge Merrys, who were asked everywhere because they always had been,
被邀请的常客有塞尔弗里奇·梅里夫妇——他们到处受邀请是因为历来如此，
the Beauforts, on whom there was a claim of relationship,
博福特夫妇——人们要求与他们建立联系，
and Mr. Sillerton Jackson and his sister Sophy (who went wherever her brother told her to),
以及西勒顿·杰克逊先生与妹妹索菲（哥哥让她去哪儿她就去哪儿）。
were some of the most fashionable and yet most irreproachable of the dominant "young married" set;
与这些中坚人物为伍的是几对最时髦却又最无懈可击、超群出众的“年轻夫妇”；
the Lawrence Leffertses, Mrs. Lefferts Rushworth (the lovely widow),
还有劳伦斯·莱弗茨夫妇，莱弗茨·拉什沃斯太太（那位可爱的寡妇），
the Harry Thorleys, the Reggie Chiverses and young Morris Dagonet and his wife (who was a van der Luyden).
哈里·索利夫妇，雷杰·奇弗斯夫妇，以及小莫里斯·达格尼特和他妻子（她姓范德卢顿）。
The company indeed was perfectly assorted, since all the members belonged to the little inner group of people who,
这伙客人真可谓最完美的组合，因为他们都属于那个核心小团体，
during the long New York season, disported themselves together daily and nightly with apparently undiminished zest.
在纽约漫长社交季节里，他们热情不减地日夜在一起寻欢作乐。
Forty-eight hours later the unbelievable had happened;
48小时之后，令人不可思议的事情发生了。
every one had refused the Mingotts' invitation except the Beauforts and old Mr. Jackson and his sister.
除去博福特夫妇及老杰克逊先生和妹妹，所有的人都拒绝了明戈特家的邀请。
The intended slight was emphasised by the fact that even the Reggie Chiverses, who were of the Mingott clan,
还有一个事实突出了人们的故意怠慢：甚至属于明戈特家族的雷杰·奇弗斯夫妇
were among those inflicting it;
也加盟作梗，
and by the uniform wording of the notes, in all of which the writers "regretted that they were unable to accept,"
而且他们的回函措辞也十分统一，都是直截了当地说“抱歉不能接受邀请”，
without the mitigating plea of a "previous engagement" that ordinary courtesy prescribed.
连一般情况下出于礼貌常用的“事先有约”这种缓冲性借口都没有。
New York society was, in those days, far too small, and too scant in its resources,
那时候的纽约社交界范围还很小，娱乐活动也少得可怜，
for every one in it (including livery-stable-keepers, butlers and cooks) not to know exactly on which evenings people were free;
远不至于使其中任何人（包括马车行的老板、男仆及厨师在内）无法确知人们哪些晚上空闲。
and it was thus possible for the recipients of Mrs. Lovell Mingott's invitations to make cruelly clear their determination not to meet the Countess Olenska.
正因为如此，接到洛弗尔·明戈特太太请柬的人们不愿与奥兰斯卡伯爵夫人会面的决心，才表达得那么明确，那么无情。
The blow was unexpected; but the Mingotts, as their way was, met it gallantly.
这一打击是出乎意料的；然而明戈特一家以他们惯有的方式勇敢地迎接了这一挑战。
Mrs. Lovell Mingott confided the case to Mrs. Welland, who confided it to Newland Archer;
洛弗尔·明戈特太太把情况秘密告知了韦兰太太，韦兰太太又秘密告知了纽兰· 阿切尔，
who, aflame at the outrage, appealed passionately and authoritatively to his mother;
他听了大为光火，急忙像下达命令似地要求母亲立即采取行动。
who, after a painful period of inward resistance and outward temporising,
做母亲的虽然内心里极其不愿，外表上却又不能不对他尽力抚慰。
succumbed to his instances (as she always did), and immediately embracing his cause with an energy redoubled by her previous hesitations,
经过一段痛苦的斗争之后，还是屈从了他的要求（像一向那样），她立即采纳他的主张，且由于先前的犹豫而干劲倍增，
put on her grey velvet bonnet and said: "I'll go and see Louisa van der Luyden."
戴上她的灰丝绒帽说：“我去找路易莎·范德卢顿。”
